Tennessee defensive back Rashaan Gaulden (7) breaks up a pass intended for Appalachian State wide receiver Jaquil Capel (16) during the first half of an NCAA college football game Thursday, Sept. 1, 2016 in Knoxville, Tenn.
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Still best known for its landmark upset of no. 5 MI in the Big House in 2007, the Mountaineers squandered an opportunity to pull off a repeat feat against another top-10 team.
A couple of missed kicks and an inability to recover an overtime fumble prevented the Mountaineers from getting it done.
Tennessee struggled in every facet and never led until a weird overtime touchdown, as Jalen Hurd recovered quarterback Joshua Dobbs’ fumble in the end zone. “We put ourselves in position to win and didn’t capitalize”. The Mountaineers have a proud program with a history of upsetting big-time schools. The Mountaineers have since left the FCS ranks and had their first season as a full-fledged Bowl Subdivision member a year ago.
Until Jones leads Tennessee to convincing wins over the teams the Vols are supposed to beat and unless he beats Florida or Alabama, there will be doubts about the game-day decisions of himself and his staff. “If he misses like that, I’d still be happy with him”. “This is the first game, and this is a tough environment to come into for a freshman kicker”, Satterfield said. “A touchdown’s a touchdown”. Hurd recovered in the end zone.
The game only went into overtime because Appalachian State’s Michael Rubino missed an extra-point attempt in the second quarter and a 42-yard field goal that would have broken a 13-all tie with 5:24 left.
“We knew coming into the game that we were facing a top-10 defense”, Dobbs said. The Volunteers committed two first-half turnovers and lost linebacker Jalen Reeves-Maybin to a targeting penalty in the opening quarter as Appalachian State built a 13-3 lead. Accordingly, there’s no such thing as a bad win – at least in the eyes of Tennessee head coach Butch Jones.
Cam Sutton, the nation’s leading punt returner last season, fumbled his first attempt Thursday to set up an Appalachian State touchdown.
The Vols’ offensive linemen were pushed around by a smaller, yet quicker Appalachian State defensive front.
The Mountaineers pushed their advantage to 13-3 with 8:53 remaining in the second quarter as Lamb floated a ball down the right sideline to Marcus Cox. Yet in this game, they scored just 20, in overtime, and never really got going against a team that they should have been able to simply overwhelm based on talent alone.
Cox showed he can run effectively against any team from any conference. The Mountaineers pushed the Vols into overtime but ultimately it was the home team who escaped with a 20-13 win in remarkable fashion.
The biggest question surrounding Tennessee during the offseason was whether it could add efficiency and explosiveness to its passing attack.
The Mountaineers came out in the second quarter strong with a huge Lamb to Cox 33 yard touchdown pass to expand the lead.
“I’ve never been part of a frustrating win”, Jones said.
“I think we’ve been underestimated for a long time”, Boggs said.
App’s offense did not score in the second half due to a stiffening of the Tennessee defense, but they also did not do themselves any favors with the opportunities that they had. “We talk about covering down as an offense and following the ball”.
Jackson completed 17 of 23 passes for 286 yards and six touchdowns and rushed 11 times for 119 yards and two scores, the first a 36-yard run on Louisville’s opening drive. Appalachian State must avoid looking ahead to its September 17 home game with Miami. Tennessee’s next game is against Virginia Tech on September 10 at Bristol Motor Speedway in Bristol, Tenn.
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Remember a year ago when the media, myself included, had Auburn as a top-10 team and hyped up quarterback Jeremy Johnson as a darkhorse candidate to win the Heisman Trophy?
